Ambition Essay
by Clan Bastnagle 1
Summary: an essay on mcbeth


Ambition can change the world

Ambition can drive us to build or destroy a nation. One person's ambition can raise an army. Ambition is the driving force for much of human history. Why did Caesar conquer Britain? Ambition. Why did Thomas Edison invent the light bulb? Ambition. Why did a man go to the moon? Ambition. Most of humanity's greatest accomplishments have come as a result of ambition. One man's desire to accomplish great things can greatly alter the life of other men. Think about Steve Jobs. His ambition to invent and create technology has forever changed how we communicate, learn, and how we view the world around us. Ambition is fueled by either dire circumstances or hope for the future.

William Shakespeare's _Macbeth _shows ambition can be highly dangerous if it is not kept in check by humility. As Macbeth approaches Duncan's room to murder him he says, "I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition, which o'erleaps itself / And falls on th'other." ( .lines) Macbeth is saying the thing that is driving him is not the want to murder, but the ambition to be king. Macbeth is a soldier, so killing is part of his life, but he is not someone wanting to kill just to kill. The thought though, placed in his head by the witches that he could be king, drives his ambition to make him kill Duncan. Macbeth's walk though to kill Duncan shows the downside of ambition that "to live with ambition is to live in fear and anxiety, unless, that is, the weight of our ambition can be relieved by gratitude" (Burton par.12). Macbeth is plagued by doubts and troubled by what he is to do, but his ambition of wanting to be king overrules this fear and anxiety.

The talk between Macduff and Malcolm in Act IV of _Macbeth _shows that one may be ambitious without being greedy and corrupt. Malcolm pulls Macduff aside and talks to him playing the part of a person consumed with greedy ambition to test if Macduff's ambition of overthrowing Macbeth is sincere or just more greed. Macduff and Malcolm's discussion shows that "ambition is a complex construct born out of a host of factors including but not limited to parental role models, intelligence, past achievement, fear of failure or rejection, envy, anger, revenge, feelings of inferiority or superiority, competitiveness, and the instinctual drives for life and sex" (Burton par. #). Macduff shows the better part of ambition, which for him is clearly tempered by his upbringing and his love of his country.

Lady Macbeth shows ambition that leads to serious self doubt and depression, "Just as mania can end in depression, so ambition can end in anguish and despair." (Burton par.#). Lady Macbeth's ambition for she and her husband embodies the idea of "it's not that women aren't ambitious enough to compete for what they want; it's that they're more selective about when they engage in competition; they're willing to get ahead at high cost but not at any cost" (Kruger). Lady Macbeth pushes her husband's ambition to become King and to rule Scotland, "Thou wouldst be great/Art not without ambition, but without/The illness should attend it" (1.5) She does not see what the consequences of this would be though, that the killing of Duncan would not be the end of what Macbeth does for his ambition and the crown, but the start. Lady Macbeth is driven to suicide by the results of her ambition and her husband's ambition which she has pushed and pushed. Again, ambition and naked greed bring about a downfall.

Ambition coupled with the desire to good can accomplish great things, but ambition with greed leads to a downfall, "while there are plenty of benefits that undeniably come with learning the ways of ambition, there are plenty of perils too." (Kruger) Macbeth and Lady Macbeth show the dark side of ambition:

"While most ambitious people keep their secret Caesar tucked safely away, it can emerge surprisingly, even suddenly. Says Frans de Waal, a primatologist at the Yerkes Primate Center in Atlanta and the author of a new book, _Our Inner Ape_: "You can have a male chimp that is the most laid-back character, but one day he sees the chance to overthrow the leader and becomes a totally different male. I would say 90% of people would behave this way too. On an island with three people, they might become a little dictator." (Kruger)

Lady Macbeth even shows the physiological problems that come with unchecked ambition, "a yearning for supremacy can create its own set of problems. Heart attacks, ulcers and other stress-related ills are more common among high achievers" (Kruger) Macduff and Malcolm on the other hand show that ambition can be a positive. They want to rule, but to do so in a way that would let Scotland be free of the tyranny of Macbeth. Their ambition brings about a hope rather than a despair, "it's that very flexibility — that multiplicity of possible rewards — that makes dreaming big dreams and pursuing big goals worth all the bother. Ambition is an expensive impulse, one that requires an enormous investment of emotional capital. Like any investment, it can pay off in countless different kinds of coin." (Kruger par.#).

Ambition is a human force that is very much capable of doing good things, but it must be combined with the willpower and want to do good, and not for simple and naked greed. The main focus of _Macbeth _is that the Macbeths are driven by their naked ambition and greed to take the throne and then to do whatever it takes to keep the stolen crown. Their ambition is their downfall because there is nothing to temper it and no goal for it other than to simply have what they want. Macduff and Malcolm show ambition in a more positive light with the want to do good for their country. Ambition can create dictators and tyrants of both countries and at a personal level, but it can also lead to humans going to the moon and curing disease to save the lives of millions, "a person shrinks or expands into the degree and nature of his ambitions. Ambition needs to be cultivated and refined, and yet has no teachers." (Burton)


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